JMasek

In response to an earlier post, staff in RTA's Schedule Department is aware of the running time issues on the #26 line and they are taking steps to address the problems.

^I will check. Virtually all "green" signs are under ODOT's umbrella. Euclid Avenue is a federal highway, which is also their area. I am sure there are books of rules for how and where signs are to be hung.

This is in response to several earlier postings. The original question...is RTA responsible for snow removal at bus stops? My answer was no. Then the issue kind of morphed into a Euclid Corridor question, and some I never addressed that. There is a multi-page agreement with the City of Cleveland that details all areas of responsibility when the project is complete. Because we are in a gray area of being half-complete, I am not sure of the answer. However, I will check and get back to you. The stations along Euclid Avenue are certainly much different than your average bus stop/bus shelter in a residential area. On light rail: RTA cleans snow from the platforms and shelters. RTA contracts with the City of Shaker Heights to plow snow on certain roadways and sidewalks, and plow the parking areas, at those stations that have parking areas. On heavy rail: RTA staff and equipment clear snow on the parking lots, sidewalk and platform areas.

<<Granted, there's only so much you can do with a bus.>> Although you may call them buses, we call them Rapid Transit Vehicles (RTVs).

<<The question: is RTA responsible for clearing snow from its bus stops?>> RTA serves 8,557 bus stops. All bus stops are on sidewalks that are cared for by municipal governments. So, no, RTA is not responsible. If RTA had to hire staff to clear snow from all those bus stops, it would become a non-issue, because there would be little no money left in the budget to pay the salaries of bus operators

<<...Your bashing of people who enjoy alcohol now and again as "drunks" is not very kind.>> I apologize. I did not mean to offend anyone. I was just pointing out our individual responsibility. No transit system can be all things to all people. RTA has limited resources, and its core business is getting people to work and home again. On a second level, we try to provide service to special events because we know there will be a concentrated demand (a lot of people in a short amount of time), and thus, a good use of our resources. Providing extra service on Dec. 31 would drain resources from those two top missions. In the past, ridership was never strong that evening. Regarding bus vs. rail for special events... Rail is the most cost-effective way for RTA to serve special events at Browns Stadium, Public Square, Progressive Field or Quicken Loans Arena. The bus system is too diverse, geographically speaking. If we agree to increase bus service for a special event, then which routes do we select? We cannot increase service on all routes. Remember, one bus operating for one hour costs RTA about $100. As a day-to-day example, look at the Wolstein Center at CSU. When that center hosts a special event, there is literally NO increase in ridership, although several bus lines serve that area. So, when there is a concert at the Q, RTA adds rail service to handle the added crowds. When a concert comes to CSU, no extra service is added, because none is needed. I hope this helps explain some of the realities that RTA faces daily.

Thanks for the note. I have passed it along to the Corridor team. We work closely with the City of Cleveland, and I am sure that someone will address this issue. (personal opinion follows) On a related note, that of walking downtown, have you noticed that this is late January, and some downtown merchants/building owners have not yet discovered how to shovel snow? I am surprised and disappointed that the local media have not taken people to task for this. Why should I go into your store for goods and services if you cannot make the effort to clean your sidewalk? The answer is..I don't...but I do have to pass your store to reach my destination. When the weather is bad, I fall back (no pun intended) on the only two options left to me -- riding the trolleys as much as possible, and walking in the street.

Jan. 22, 2008, The Columbus Dispatch Mapquest, move over Columbus and Cleveland have been added to PublicRoutes.com, a directions-based Web resource for public transportation. The service provides point-to-point directions for all modes of transportation available and also has information and directions to each city’s top points of interests such as restaurants, sports arenas and nightclubs. The company at www.publicroutes.com gives directions in more than 30 major cities in the U.S. and United Kingdom, and plans to expand to include more. Thanks to Stu Nicholson for pointing this out.

Was there widespread use of this feature or did someone think they could wring a few extra dollars out of the passes? There was widespread abuse of the transfer, from RTA's perspective. Regular bus fare is already heavily discounted -- it costs around $5 to provide a bus ride, the rest is subsidized by the sales tax. Like anyone in business, RTA needs the revenue to survive, and when people abuse the system, policies are put in place to stop the abuse. In retail for instance, some stores lose $100,000 a year to shoplifters. How do they recover that? They charge higher prices for everyone else. If they can reduce the shoplifting abuse, they can offer lower prices. The same principle applies here.

http://www.riderta.com/nu_newsroom_releases.asp?listingid=1131 Highlights of the Jan. 22 RTA Board meeting have been posted.

This is in response to an earlier posting about why RTA began selling the higher priced passes a few days before the Jan. 7 fare increase: Quote from Matt Davis, RTA Revenue Dept: "The vending machines were changed early because most customers wanted to buy passes and farecards that would be valid after the price change. We did not want to sell something out of the machines that would have a very short usage time."

RTA operates extra rail service on any day when there is a major event downtown, such as the St. Paddy's Parade, the holiday lighting ceremony, and the Cleveland Orchestra concert. The extra service is there to help thousands of riders get to Public Square and back. The service was added for all riders. It is not targeted specifically for the drunks.

New Year's Eve: RTA's primary goal is to maintain bus service for work trips. Besides, for much of the rail, you will be dropped off in a parking lot, and get in your car (drunk?) to drive home. No thank you. Been there, done that, ridership was low. Summer rail until 2 a.m.: RTA now operates full rail service to every special event, such as concerts at the Q, and Tribe game. Service is guaranteed until 90 minutes after the event ends, even if the baseball game goes into extra innings. If getting drunk is your idea of a good time, fine. Be socially responsible, and line up a designated driver. RTA's budget already addresses a multitude of concerns, and this one is not on our plate.

RTA's transfer policy... No paper transfers are issued. In rare cases (such as a Zoo or Museum promotion), riders have to prove they took RTA to an event, so operators issue a piece of paper so they qualify for discounted admission. All fare media issued by RTA includes transfer privileges. If you are using a 5-trip farecard, you have 2.5 hours of free transfers from the time you first use it, as long as you are not trying to return on the same line. For instance, if you take bus route #007 downtown to pay a bill, you cannot take #007 back home, without using up a second ride.

<<I have no problem with RTA's fare increase as long as they dont cut service and work on improving current service (more frequent service, expanded rail in the future)>> The purpose of the fare increase, as stated many, many times, was to help balance the budget because of the rising cost of diesel fuel. If RTA did not move to increase fares, it would not be able to balance the budget, as required by law. Maintaining fiscal integrity means there will be buses and Rapids operating to get you to work each day. The fare increase was NEVER intended, and never promised, as a means of improving service or expanding rail. I am sorry if I burst your bubble, but reality can be a pain sometimes.

http://www.riderta.com/PDF/RidersDigest/Farebox-RD.pdf Full details on the fare collection upgrade

Yes, but no foreign money.

KJP We have discovered that there are some ways to use currency more quickly. We are now working on some signage, etc. to help educate the customers. I passed along your comment to the team that is riding herd on the fare collection upgrade

CTownsFinest wants RTA to "run more busses." That's like telling the City of Cleveland to "hire more police" because you want to see a reduction in crime. It has never been proven that more police = less crime. If there are 10 intersections in Cleveland, and you hire 9 police, a crime will be committed at the 10th intersection. The City of Cleveland will NEVER be able to hire as many police as it needs, without decimating the rest of the General Fund. RTA will NEVER be able to operate as many buses as our customers would like for the very same reason. Too many people want to see frequent bus service, when the numbers just aren't there to justify it. (We have the numbers, and we review them constantly, to match service with demand. They are both moving targets.) It costs "around" $100 an hour to operate a bus, including fuel and operator salary. Plus, RTA's budget is being pushed to the limits this year, despite the recent fare increase. The answer lies in increased state funding, which right now, can best be described as "poor." If you want to see things improve, write to your state legislator. RTA has already cut about $25 million annually from its budget. Now, let's see someone else pony up to the table with a "meaningful" solution.

<<Has RTA considered bringing back the 10-ride passes?>> No, and here is why. To prevent customers from going from A to B and back to B all in one short trip (and one fare), we now place two lines of info on the back of each 5-trip pass, each time the pass is used. That gives you 10 lines of info, so the 5-trip pass is the most that can be offered. I hope this is clear enough. RTA is now using the term "5-trip pass" instead of "5-ride pass" for more accurately reflect this.

Year-end ridership numbers...drum roll please... For the fifth straight year, RTA showed a ridership increase. 2007 Total: 57.3 million, up 0.1 percent Heavy rail: up 7.9 percent Light rail: up 10 percent Total rail: up 8.6 percent Bus: down 1.4 percent Paratransit: Up 6.9 percent Bike boardings in December were 2,349, up 12.1 percent. For the year, bike boardings were around 50,000, up 39 percent.

I have been gone for a few days, and I am WAAY behind on the answers. I will try to play catch-up this afternoon. Please bear with me...I read posts in chrono order.

^ You raise a lot of issues, and I cannot respond to all of them without checking with some other people. I will respond as quickly as I get the info. Thanks for sharing.

Euclid Corridor Construction Alerts - Permanent Lane Closures/Traffic Patterns Change from Stokes Boulevard - Mayfield Road Weather permitting, permanent lane closures from Stokes Boulevard to Mayfield Road will begin Jan. 29. The south lanes of Euclid Avenue between Stokes and Mayfield will close. Two lanes of traffic will be maintained in each direction utilizing the north half of Euclid Avenue. Be prepared for lane shifts when approaching this area. For more information, contact the project office at 216-771-4144.

^ I have not seen the specs, but in recent years, most of RTA's bus purchases have been low-floor.